Eyebeemania

This morning, I had to pop into work and let them know about my post-op recovery and when I am likely to be back to work.

I went to the pharmacy first and picked up the meds I had sent to the doctor’s surgery on Monday. Once I had got those, I then took a bus downtown and went to work. I had a chat with quite a few of my colleagues, before getting the formal stuff out of the way, and a bit more chatting afterwards too.

I went into a local charity shop and got some CDs for a quid or so each. There were two multi-CD collections. One had a CD missing, and the other had an extra CD!

I then took a bus towards home and dropped into the local pub for a couple of pints and a burger. I did a little writing when I got to the pub.

it’s been one of those days. It’s really done nothing but rain all day and it’s a little windy too, which made it unpleasant. I didn’t need to go out.

So I didn’t I stayed indoors all day and I think that was a wise decision. So I didn’t I stayed indoors all day and I think that was a wise decision.

It’s been a week, since I’ve had the partial thyroidectomy. I’ve been fine until this morning, when I was awake early (as seems to be usual). I need to cough to clear my throat, and it was quite painful. This hasn’t happened before, it’s just been more uncomfortable than anything else. I was worried that something was happening inside my neck. It fel like something could be tearing perhaps?

I got to just after eight, and I messaged the surgery. They called back and offered me an appointment for 11.30. BY 11.30, I felt quite a bit better, and the sharp stabbing pain when coughing had largely gone. I went for the appointment, and the GP said it looked like a possible infection, and gave me some antibiotic cream to spread on the area.

I went to the pharmacy to collect it, and got Kathy’s prescription meds as well. I walked back home and applied some of the new ointment.

Kathy was watching her Chinese stuff, so I decided to go out for another walk, as I need to put some steps in at least. I took my camera with me so I could take a few photographs.

I ended up walking to the Queen’s Head to enjoy some ESB.

I did sleep better, but still awake around 03:$5, which is way too early, when I don’t need to go to work, and I could do with some extra restorative sleep.

Since waking with a cough to loosen things up overnight, I’ve developed pain when I do, so I need to keep an eye on that, as I don’t want any complications to develop.

After waking before 4 am and getting a mug of coffee, I did go back to sleep until 61.5 am, which I am grateful for.

I’ve spent the day so far getting my inbox empty, reading a couple of chapters of a book on my Kindle app, on the Mac, watching YouTube videos and listening to some music. I have spent a little while on social media platforms, but I do not like spending all day just mindlessly scrolling, especially with all the crap going on in the world.

Eight now, I have poured myself a bottle of London Pride, and I will sit back and enjoy that before I go make something for dinner.

I’ve been awake an hour already. I think I’ll get up and go make myself a mug of coffee!

I’m not allowed to lift much. I’m not allowed to turn my head much. I’m not in any pain, just discomfort. I feel rather drained, but other than that, I’m fine in myself.

I have a ton of jobs to do around the house, but I cannot do the mright now. I wanted to get out in the garden and get some stuff sorted out, but it will have to wait.

What can I do right now?

Well, I can sit here and write like this. I can read books, blogs, and magazines, and I have many of each, so no shortage there. I can take myself out for a walk. That’s fine as long as it’s not raining or too cold. I can listen to music. I can watch TV, which is my case will mostly be YouTube videos of interest. I can do some photography editing indoors, and if I go out for a walk, I can take my camera with me. I could walk to the pub for a couple of beers, as I’m not on any medication that would prevent it. At the moment, though, I’m not really feeling like that.

Right now, after I’ve posted this, I’m going to go get myself another mug of hot coffee.

I was allowed out quite quickly this morning from the hospital. I’m quite expected the paperwork to take quite some time but he didn’t.

I did have to ask three or four times for a sicknote but I did get one at last and that carries me through till February 3 when I come back to work.

Kathy made some chicken and a bit of salad for dinner as neither of us were particularly hungry after we’ve had a little sleep this afternoon.

We sat and watched Johnny Cash biography on the TV this evening and then I went to bed

I was told that after my op yesterday, that I had to sleep sitting up. It wasn’t going to happen, and it mostly didn’t happen.

I can’t sleep sitting up, unless I am extremely tired, and I can’t sleep on my back either.

My Apple Watch clocked a total of 1 hour 19 minutes sleep all night. Oh well. I hope to be going home today.

This is really to check if everything is getting cross-posted to the various platforms that I have set up

This time tomorrow, I could be under the knife. I will certainly be in hospital in any case.

I’ve had this annoying cough for some years now. Lingering coughs should be investigated, of course, and it was.

I had a CT scan, which revealed extra growth around my thyroid. Then I was sent to the Royal Marsden for a PET scan to determine if I had anything malignant, and after a worrying wait, the result was negative.

It seems I have thyroid nodules, which apparently many people over 50 get. Most people aren’t even aware of them, but mine have grown inwards, pressing on my oesophagus and windpipe. This causes me to cough when I sit down after walking, and also after eating.

It doesn’t appear to be getting any worse, but it’s not getting any better, and it can be quite embarrassing when in public. Coughing my guts up for ten minutes in a restaurant, or on public transport, certainly gets disapproving looks and people moving away from me on the bus or train, especially since the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hopefully, the operation to remove these nodules will cure the coughing, which can be quite tiring for me at times, even when on my own.

There are risks, of course. One is that my voice could be affected, and the worst-case scenario is that I could lose my voice altogether. Some would welcome that, methinks.

Today, I can eat and drink normally. I can even have water and black coffee as late as 6 am tomorrow, and it’s fortunate for me that I drink my coffee black these days!

Hopefully, the postoperative recovery won’t be too painful or take too long, and I’ll be back in the swing of things soon.

Perhaps I’ll take up singing if this cough is finally dispelled.

What’s that? You’d rather I lose my voice altogether?

I shouldn’t be surprised, really, having spent most of my life in this part of the world, but it certainly been a temperature up and down yo-yo these past few days. Monday was a fairly cold start, and yesterday morning we started out at 48°F, and this morning we woke up to 32, so we are quite sure where we are with the temperature.

It’s a pleasant enough day looking out there through the window. The sun is shining. It’s a blue, cloudless sky, and it looks like a perfect day to go out until you stick your nose out the door, and then it’s like walking into the freezer.

eyebee.substack.com/p/peacefu…

I’m drinking coffee now. The coffee is hot and the weather is cold here. I love coffee and pretend it wakes me up or keeps me awake, but it does neither really!

There’s some French named storm, that’s come in from the Atlantic, and it’s causing high winds in some places, snow in others, and here, it’s just squally rain, and wind gusts. It just makes being outside unpleasant.

Today’s 41°F at 3.30 am felt almost warm compared to the 22° that greeted me yesterday.

Alarm went off at 03:29 and it’s 22°F outside. I can’t wait until summertime.

Christmas and New Year is done. My Birthday, on 3rd January is past too, so that’s that for another year! Now, I’m looking forward to spring, warmer weather, and a break from work.

I’m up at 3.30 am all week. I was dreading it this morning, but I got up OK, and at the time of writing this - 9.45 am - I don’t feel too tired. I always say that I’ll have a nap when I get home - I finish at 1.15 pm. I rarely do though.

Right now I’m having a coffee break!